Apostle Islands National Lakeshore

 Sunday, 21 June 2026

The Apostle Islands National Lakeshore is on (and in) Lake Superior at Bayfield, Wisconsin. We booked a late afternoon cruise with Apostle Island Cruises, and it was a wonderful, but cold and windy, boat ride. By the time we finished the cruise, almost everyone had left the open top deck for the comfort of the enclosed deck below.

Lots of herring gulls in the harbor at Bayfield.

Some of the islands are fairly close together.

The remnants of the landing where blocks from the brownstone quarry on Hermit Island were loaded on ships and taken to the mainland.

Rocky shoreline - probably Hermit Island.

I was trying to get a photo of the bald eagle at the top, and I managed to get its mate as well.

A lichen covered rocky overhang. In the shallow water you can see fallen rocks.

Even though it's in a lake, these detached rocks are still called "sea stacks".

Historic fish camp on Manitou Island.

The open waters of Lake Superior. The barely visible land on the other side is Minnesota's North Shore.

The Devil's Island Lighthouse. The building to the right is a maintenance shed. The more substantial Keeper's House (not visible) is inland and to the left.

The north shore of Devil's Island faces the full brunt of Lake Superior's storms and has been eroded into fanciful shapes. Tour boats can only go around Devil's Island on relatively calm days. Today was an exceptionally calm day!

More of the eroded Devil's Island shoreline.

Headlands and islands.

The shoreline of Raspberry Island.

The Raspberry Island Lighthouse. The Keeper's and Assistant Keeper's quarters are on either side of the lighthouse. No need to go outside to go to work!

A solar-powered beacon has replaced the lighthouse for navigation. In the daytime it's barely discernible.

Mickelson Trail

 Tuesday, 16 June through Friday, 19 June, 2026

We spent four days riding the Mickelson Trail in South Dakota's Black Hills. It's a great ride, although I didn't like 10 mile upgrades - the 10 mile downhills are a different story. At times the wind was so strong that we had to pedal when going downhill. Lodging and logistics were coordinated through Crossroads Bike Tours. We rode a short section of this trail in August 2017.

The official end of the Mickelson Trail, and the end of our ride on the first day. Officially, the trail starts in Edgemont and ends in Deadwood, but most riders start in Deadwood and finish in Edgemont for a total net descent of more than 1800 ft. We did a variation, starting in Rochford on day one and riding to Deadwood; then on day two we started in Rochford and rode to Hill City.

The start of our ride at the Rochford trailhead. Between Rochford and Deadwood we went through Tunnel D and over the highest point on the trail at an elevation of 6255 ft.

Between Deadwood and Custer City there are many of these gates. Trail users go through the small gate at the left. Much of the trail goes through "open range" and we did encounter cows and calves on the trail.

Typical trail scenery. The northern 3/4 is particularly wild and scenic.

Lon riding through Tunnel B on our second day. That day we rode through the remaining three tunnels (Tunnels A, B, and C).

Sue emerging from Tunnel B.

Sue riding towards the end of our fourth and final day. Friday, 19 June, was the first day of an annual mass ride on the Mickelson. We were joined by about 300 riders. It was quite a change from having the trail almost entirely to ourselves for three days. That many riders also kicked up a lot of dust.

The end of our ride and the official start of the Mickelson Trail in Edgemont. From here we had a shuttle that took us and our bikes back to our car in Deadwood.

Along the Trail

Bank swallow nest in a small shelter.

Evidence of past industry (mining and logging, mostly) were common along the trail. This is the remnants of a gold mine.

Lon at the Kirk Trailhead, one ridge away from Lead ("leed"). The tower in the background is part of SURF (Sanford Underground Research Facility) that has turned the former Homestake Gold Mine into a facility for physics research - especially neutrinos and dark matter.

A closer look at the SURF building. Unfortunately, we did not have an opportunity to go to the Visitor Center in Lead.

Hill City: The World's Largest Smoky Bear, a creation of Dahl's Chainsaw Art.

The "Bicycle Sculpture" in Pringle.

The emerging Crazy Horse Memorial sculpture can be seen from the trail.

Vancouver to Toronto by Rail - Part 3 - Cities

Thursday, 18 September through Wednesday, 24 September 2025

Aside from starting in Vancouver and ending in Toronto, we had a short amount of time off the train in Winnipeg.

Vancouver

Thursday, 18 September and Friday, 19 September
Before getting on the train, we had a city tour of Vancouver.

Reflection of the Fairmont Hotel Vancouver in a nearby skyscraper.

Close-up of the hotel gargoyles in reflection.

Downtown Vancouver at low tide as seen from Stanley Park.

Three of the Stanley Park totem poles. Each one tells a story.

Vancouver's busy seaport as seen from Stanley Park.

A raven mask in the Bill Reid Gallery.

Who knew that cement silos could be works of art? These "Giants" can be seen at the Heidelberg Concrete plant on Granville Island.

Winnipeg

Sunday, 21 September 
We got to Winnipeg at 10 PM on Sunday night and went for a short walk to the Red River pedestrian bridge.

The Human Rights Museum in downtown Winnipeg.

The Red River pedestrian bridge is lit up at night.

Another view of the pedestrian bridge.

Toronto

Tuesday, 23 September 
We arrived in Toronto about 3:30 PM, and had a short time to walk around the downtown area. We had to leave at 6 AM to go to the airport, so we really didn't have much time here!

A mural in Toronto's Union Station.

Looking east on Front Street between Union Station and the Fairmont Royal York Hotel.

A sky clock in the lobby of the Fairmont Royal York Hotel.

Vancouver to Toronto by Rail - Part 2 - Landscapes

Thursday, 18 September through Wednesday, 24 September 2025

Each morning we woke up to a new landscape as we traveled through the four western Canadian provinces.

Western Cordillera

Friday, 19 September and Saturday, 20 September

Three mountain systems make up the Western Cordillera. The coastal range and Columbia mountains are volcanic, while the Rockies are made of sedimentary rocks.

While not seen on the train, Mt. Rainier near Seattle was prominently visible as our flight neared Vancouver.

Another volcano, Mt. Baker was visible as we made our way out of the Vancouver area.

There were many cedar log rafts making their way down the Fraser River.

North Thompson River

Sunrise in the mountains.

Burned-out gas pumps in Jasper - a result of a devastating wildfire in 2024.

At Jasper, the Rockies go from colorful (above) to gray (below).

The Rockies south and east of Jasper are shades-of-gray limestone.

We leave the Front Range of the Rockies and enter the foothills. No more mountains.

Prairies

Sunday, 21 September

Eastern Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba are Canada's prairie provinces. While there is some mining and fossil fuel extraction, agriculture dominates.

Canola harvest.

Potash mining leaves huge mountains of slag.

There's a grain elevator along the tracks every 5 to 10 miles.

Prairie sunset.

The Canadian Shield - Trees & Rocks & Water

Monday, 22 September and Tuesday, 23 September

The Canadian (or Laurentian) Shield exposes the basement rock of the North American continent. These are some of the most ancient rocks on earth. Ice age glaciers have carved lakes into the rock. This is the land of the beaver. While we saw many beaver lodges (up to 5 in one pond!) and dams, and 2 or 3 swimming, I didn't get a photo.

Sunrise in far western Ontario.

Lake reflections.

Rain in the dome.

Sunset

Maples enter the forests east of Hornepayne, so now there is fall color on the landscape.

Foggy lake.